Bin Laden's Death Leads to a Rush on Reservations at Dallas' Abacus and Other Restaurants

What do Dallas restaurant-goers do when news spreads that U.S.
military forces have killed Osama bin Laden, the man behind the most heinous
attack on American soil? They don't embark on drinking binges. That's too
pedestrian.

No, they make plans to gorge themselves on fine-dining fare, giving
in to far more expensive excesses.

One of the restaurants experiencing a surge in
reservation requests is Abacus. Chef-owner Kent Rathbun tells City of Ate that
the restaurant's management has been trying to find the best way to approach
the issue.

"I have had several people tell me they were coming in specifically
to celebrate bin Laden's killing and capture," Rathbun says. "It has
spurred a lot of discussion in-house. Some have suggested creating special
dishes or a special menu for the evening. It's all a little morbid."

A similar debate is
raging on
SideDish,
where
the food blog's commenters, disgusted with and approving of this trend,
have been so vocal that Nancy Nichols had to step in.

This fever hasn't taken
hold of all of Dallas' upscale
restaurants. Stephan Pyles hasn't noticed an increase in reservations, the hostess
there said. And in the end, Rathbun decided that
no new items would be available to honor the death of bin Laden.

"If people
want to celebrate," he said, "I'll help them celebrate. But I'm not going to
capitalize on it any further."